US-12618910-B2 - Method and system for operating a sensor device

US12618910B2US 12618910 B2US12618910 B2US 12618910B2US-12618910-B2

Abstract

A system and method for operating a sensor device includes generating an electrical energy corresponding to a heat dissipated from a surface of an equipment, regulating the electrical energy to generate an optimum output voltage using a maximum power point tracking technique and feeding the optimum output voltage to charge an energy storage device, triggering a sensor device to acquire sensor data when a charge stored in the energy storage device is equal to or greater than a pre-defined threshold value, and transmitting the sensor data to a receiving device.

Inventors

Reddy Nili Bhaskar
Appadurai Balaji
V N Pranathy

Assignees

ABB SCHWEIZ AG

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20240215
Priority Date: 20230216

Claims (14)

1 . A method for operating a sensor device, the method comprising: generating, by a thermoelectric generating module, an electrical energy corresponding to a heat dissipated from a surface of an equipment; regulating, by a power managing module, the electrical energy to generate an optimum output voltage using a maximum power point tracking technique; feeding, by the power managing module, the optimum output voltage to charge an energy storage device; powering, by a controlling module, the sensor device using the energy storage device; and triggering, by the controlling module, the sensor device to acquire sensor data when a charge stored in the energy storage device is equal to or greater than a pre-defined threshold value.
2 . The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising transmitting the sensor data to a receiving device.
3 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the equipment is one of a busbar, a heat sink, a power cable joint, and a transformer.
4 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein generating the electrical energy corresponding to the heat dissipated from the surface of the equipment comprises: measuring difference in heat energy between two terminals of a system, wherein one terminal of the system is positioned close to the surface of the equipment and another terminal of the system is at an ambient temperature; and generating the electrical energy based on the difference in the heat energy between the two terminals of the system.
5 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the energy storage device is one of a super-capacitor and a rechargeable battery.
6 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the sensor data is at least one of temperature data and humidity data.
7 . The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein triggering the sensor device to acquire the sensor data when the charge stored in the energy storage device is equal to or greater than the pre-defined threshold value comprises: determining an amount of energy from the charge stored in the energy storage device; determining an energy required for acquiring the sensor data and for transmitting the sensor data to a receiving device; and triggering the sensor device to acquire the sensor data when the amount of energy is equal to or greater than the energy required for acquiring the sensor data and transmitting the sensor data to the receiving device.
8 . A system for operating a sensor device, the system comprising: a thermoelectric generating module configured to generate an electrical energy corresponding to a heat dissipated from a surface of an equipment; a power managing module electrically coupled to the thermoelectric generating module, the power managing module configured to: regulate the electrical energy to generate an optimum output voltage using a maximum power point tracking technique; and feed the optimum output voltage to charge an energy storage device; a controlling module electrically coupled to the power managing module and the sensor device, the controlling module configured to power the sensor device using the energy storage device, and trigger the sensor device to acquire sensor data when a charge stored in the energy storage device is equal to or greater than a pre-defined threshold value.
9 . The system as claimed in claim 8 , further comprising a transmitting module electrically coupled to the controlling module, the transmitting module configured to transmit the sensor data to a receiving device.
10 . The system as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the equipment is one of a busbar, a heat sink, a power cable joint, and a transformer.
11 . The system as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the thermoelectric generating module is configured to: measure a difference in heat energy between two terminals of the system, wherein one terminal of the system is positioned close to the surface of the equipment and another terminal of the system is at an ambient temperature; and generate the electrical energy based on the difference in the heat energy between the two terminals of the system.
12 . The system as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the energy storage device is one of a super-capacitor or a rechargeable battery.
13 . The system as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the sensor data is at least one of temperature data and humidity data.
14 . The system as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the controlling module is configured to: determine an amount of energy from the charge stored in the energy storage device; determine an energy required for acquiring the sensor data and for transmitting the sensor data to a receiving device; and trigger the sensor device to acquire the sensor data when the amount of energy is equal to or greater than the energy required for acquiring the sensor data and transmitting the sensor data to the receiving device.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The instant application claims priority to Indian Patent Application No. 202341010459, filed Feb. 16, 2023, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure generally relates to a sensor device and, more particularly, to a method and a system for operating a sensor device. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Electrical systems comprise of equipment and/or components such as cables, busbars, heat sinks, protective devices, static transfer switches, power cable joints, one or more transformers, and the like. In such electrical systems, there exists hot spots that are at relatively high temperature in comparison to its surroundings. Conventionally, these hot spots are measured using thermocouples. However, the use of thermocouples and associated wiring harness becomes complicated to manage within the electrical systems. To overcome such problems, temperature sensors with a battery are utilized. However, the battery-operated temperature sensors have the problem of replacing the battery at periodic intervals, which may not be an efficient and safe method to carry out in the electrical systems. As a consequence, there is a need for an improved operating mechanism of a sensor device. The information disclosed in this background of the disclosure section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In an embodiment, the present disclosure provides a method for operating a sensor device. The method comprising generating an electrical energy corresponding to a heat dissipated from a surface of an equipment. Thereafter, the method comprises regulating the electrical energy to generate an optimum output voltage using a maximum power point tracking technique and feeding the optimum output voltage to charge an energy storage device. Subsequently, the method comprises triggering a sensor device to acquire sensor data when a charge stored in the energy storage device is equal to or greater than a pre-defined threshold value. In another embodiment, the present disclosure provides a system for operating a sensor device. The system comprising a thermoelectric generating module, a power managing module, and controlling module. The thermoelectric generating module is configured to generate an electrical energy corresponding to a heat dissipated from a surface of an equipment. The power managing module, electrically coupled to the thermoelectric generating module, is configured to regulate the electrical energy to generate an optimum output voltage using a maximum power point tracking technique and feed the optimum output voltage to charge an energy storage device. The controlling module, electrically coupled to the power managing module and the sensor device, is configured to trigger a sensor device to acquire sensor data when a charge stored in the energy storage device is equal to or greater than a pre-defined threshold value. The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S) The novel features and characteristics of the disclosure are set forth in the appended claims. The disclosure itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures. One or more embodiments are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures wherein like reference numerals represent like elements. FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary environment for operating a sensor device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 shows a detailed block diagram of a system in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart showing a method for operating a sensor device in accordance with some embodiments of present disclosure. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any block diagram herein represents conceptual views of illustrative systems embodying the principles of the present subject matter. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudo code, and the like represent various processes which may be substantially represented in computer readable medium and executed by a computer or processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION O